COLUMBIA, Mo. – With the offense finding its spark, No. 24/25 Auburn softball (18-8, 0-5 SEC) came from behind to plate four runs in third inning, but the bats came up just short as No. 18/20 Missouri (24-6, 3-2 SEC) scored two unanswered runs to battle back for a 6-5 win Saturday at Mizzou Softball Stadium.
The top of the order did most of the damage, collecting five of Auburn's six hits. Sydney Cox and Kaylee Horton combined for those five hits at the top of lineup. Cox went 2-for-4 at the plate with her first collegiate home run, which gave Auburn a one-run lead in the fourth. Horton turned in a 3-for-4 performance at the plate.
"I thought the top of our lineup did a nice job," said head coach Mickey Dean. "We just have to put it all together. Our defense was shaky at the beginning. It was a tough day for the pitchers. We gave up seven walks and a home run. We've got to be sharper there."
The Tigers' big inning came in the top of the third as Auburn knocked four hits and drove in four runs off a pair of singles from Makenna Dowell and Alyssa Rivera. The two upperclassmen picked up two RBI each in Saturday's game.
It was a group effort from the Tiger pitching staff in the circle. KK Dismukes earned the start and tossed just 1.1 innings. She was tagged with one earned run off one hit and issued four walks. Lexie Handley was the pitcher of record for the loss to fall to 1-1 on the season. She gave up five runs, four of which were earned, off four hits and a walk.
Samantha Yarbrough turned in a strong relief appearance for the Tigers. She allowed just one hit over the final 2.2 innings. She gave up a pair of walks but recorded all three of Auburn's strikeouts.
After quiet first inning, Missouri took advantage of a bases-loaded situation in the second, driving in a run with a grounder to second. Auburn responded in the top of third as the Tigers loaded the bases with singles from Cox and Horton and a walk to Tyler King. Dowell put the Tigers in front with a two-RBI single through a hole in the right side. Rivera plated a pair of insurance runs with a two-out single to right field.
Missouri closed the gap with one swing as Kimberly Wert tied the game at 4-4 with a three-run homer in the home half of the inning, but the Auburn offense stormed right back as the Tigers regained the lead in the fourth with a two-out solo home run from Cox.
The lead changed yet again as a two-RBI Jenna Laird single in the bottom of the fourth gave Missouri a 6-5 lead, its first since the second inning. Auburn would make a comeback bid late as Horton knocked a one-out double to put the tying run in scoring position in the seventh, but Missouri forced back-to-back ground balls to leave her stranded.
TIGER TRACKS
- Makenna Dowell recorded her third multi-RBI game of the season and the 10th of her Auburn career.
- Alyssa Rivera recorded her second multi-RBI game of the season. It was the 32nd of her Auburn career.
- Sydney Cox slugged the first home run of her collegiate career. Cox also recorded her third multi-hit game of the 2021 season.
- Kaylee Horton recorded her second multi-hit game in an Auburn uniform with a career high three hits. It was just the second three-hit game by a Tiger this season.
ON DECK
Sunday's series finale in Columbia, Mo., is scheduled for 12 p.m. CT and will be available to stream on the SEC Network+.